A three-night stay for a family of four costs from A$420 with i-escapes

SEASON

Year-round

GETTING THERE

Air Kununurra (120km) served by Skywest from Perth, Broome and Darwin or private transfer flightCar Drive from Darwin (1,000km) along the Gibb River Road
For detailed journey planner, contact Home Valley Station

Home Valley Station, The Kimberley, Australia

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by Suzanne MilneJuly 10, 2014

For a big family adventure, there is nothing quite as remote and spectacular as life on a working cattle station in outback Australia. And with 615,000 acres of rugged red dirt landscapes to its name, Home Valley Station is the perfect place to experience it.

The Kimberley region in the remote northwest of Australia delivers cinemascopic natural grandeur with falls, creeks, rivers, sandstone and limestone escarpments. Just off the historic Gibb River Road stock route, Home Valley Station sits below the Cockburn Ranges’ flat-topped mesas, overlooking the crocodile-rich Pentecost River.

Here children can take part in the Mini Muster where stockmen show the techniques of a cattle muster, go on a bushtucker trek, or take part in traditional didgeridoo performances

And when it comes to horseback mustering, the legendary JR’s (John Rodney’s) exceptional horseback training allows guests to progress from passenger to rider within a matter of hours

Form Guide Remote cattle station in Australia’s rugged outback

Yearlings Ages 4 and over

Pace Names such as Cyclone and Buddy offer clues to equine temperament, but Home Valley’s horse whisperer JR has a mount to match every rider whatever the ability for a range of activities from scenic horse rides to horsemanship lessons and mini cattle musters. The whole family can take part in the Mini Muster, which includes a Cockburn Range trail ride, and ringers (stockmen) showing the techniques of a cattle muster. Kids travel beside horses in 4WDs, while adults can ride horseback if they are of sufficient riding standard. Horsemanship and cattle drafting lessons are also included. Other activities include swimming in natural swimming holes, birdwatching, fishing as well as the opportunity to experience traditional cultural activities such as didgeridoo playing (for boys only).

Stables Stay in one of the Eco Tents, which sleep up to four people in proper beds all beneath a canvas roof, or opt for a Grass Castle Suite. Set on the banks of Bindoola Creek, these sleep up to three people in comfort with a kingsize bed and an optional add-in bed, polished wooden floors, a cowskin rug, cane armchairs, and a bathroom that comes complete with wet room and rain bath shower (request Suite 1 and you will be have more privacy, as it is the last one in the row of suites). The third option is a guesthouse room which sleeps a maximum of two; book a separate twin room or bunkbed room for children.

Feedbag Breakfast and dinner take place at the Dusty Bar & Grill, an open sided outback pub-style venue, where food ranges from the likes of breakfast omelettes and Eggs Benedict to dinner fare of Linguini Creek, Croc and Crustacean entrees (consisting of crocodile, prawns, barramundi and scallops tossed with oliver oil, garlic and tomato) and gastro pub style mains (think buffalo sausages with mash, caramelised onions and red wine gravy, steaks, or barramundi fillets). Lunch is often

PurseA three night stay for a family of four in an Eco Tent and including breakfasts start from A$420 from i-escape.